Determination of aluminium bioaccumulation in liver, gill and muscle tissues of the common carp (Cyprinus carpio)

Abstract

Aluminium is an abundant metal on earth and its concentration has increased in aquatic environments as a result of natural and industrial activities. The aim of this study was to examine the bioaccumulation of aluminium in tissues of liver, gill and muscle of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) that was used in concentrations of 1, 2, 4 and 6 mg/L in vitro. The metal in the tissues after chemical digestion was measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Compare the amount of aluminium accumulation in the tissues of gill, liver and muscle showed significant differences in different concentrations of aluminium with the control group (P<0.05). The highest amount of aluminium accumulation in gill, muscle and liver were 51.3 ± 0.4, 20.86 ± 0.5 and 11.50 ± 0.28 μg/g D.W at a concentration of 6 mg (96 hours), respectively, and the lowest were 1.2 ± 0.01, 2.9 ± 0.1 and 0.18 ± 0.3 μg/g D.W in the control group. The results showed that the highest bioaccumulation of aluminium in different tissues were gill, liver and muscle, respectively. Also, it was found that with increasing concentration of aluminium in the environment, bio-accumulation index decreased because of probably physiological activity of tissues. Significant relationship was observed between exposed time and aluminium accumulation in muscle and liver tissue. The gill is the target organ for aluminium that can be used as an indicator of environmental contamination.

Keywords

• bioaccumulation index
• aluminium
• common carp
• tissues